Discrimination, Harassment, and the Glass Ceiling: Women Executives as Change Agents

In this article, we discuss the relationships between discrimination, harassment, and the glass ceiling, arguing that many of the factors that preclude women from occupying executive and managerial positions also foster sexual harassment. We suggest that measures designed to increase numbers of women in higher level positions will reduce sexual harassment. We first define and discuss discrimination, harassment, and the glass ceiling, relationships between each, and relevant legislation. We next discuss the relationships between gender and sexual harassment, emphasizing the influence of gender inequality on sexual harassment. We then present recommendations for organizations seeking to reduce sexual harassment, emphasizing the role that women executives may play in such efforts and, importantly, the recursive effects of such efforts on increasing the numbers of women in higher level positions in organizations.     

Organizational failure to ethically manage sexual harassment: Limits to #metoo

The recent deluge of sexual harassment allegations in the media serves as a reminder that sexual harassment remains a pervasive, destructive occurrence in the workplace. Organizations in the United States have taken a legal‐centric approach to managing workplace sexual harassment, resulting in impotent anti‐harassment policies, ineffective sexual harassment training, and underused reporting mechanisms. In this conceptual paper, I argue that men's differential perceptions of sociosexual behaviors have propagated this legal‐centric approach, which fails to meet organizations’ ethical obligation to provide a safe and healthy work environment. Specifically, men have a different psychological experience of sexual harassment, which may inhibit their ability to take the perspective of targets. This lack of perspective‐taking has influenced the jurisprudence on workplace sexual harassment, which has in turn informed organizations’ approach to managing the phenomenon. I contribute to research on both business ethics and workplace sexual harassment by integrating two bodies of scholarship that have developed largely independent of one another: organizational psychology and legal. In so doing, I offer an explanation for the continued pervasiveness of workplace sexual harassment despite decades of legal sanction, organizational interventions, and research.     

Compensation of owner managers in Canadian family‐owned businesses: expropriation of minority shareholders

The aim of this paper is to test the hypothesis of owner managers expropriating minority shareholders by receiving excessive compensation. Using a sample of Canadian family firms, we found that when there is divergence between voting rights and cash flow rights, owner CEOs receive higher compensation than non‐owners. The higher the divergence between voting rights and cash flow rights, the higher the excess compensation. Further analysis shows that only poorly governed firms are affected by the expropriation problem. Copyright © 2010 ASAC. Published by John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Corporate Social Responsibility,Product Differentiation Strategy and Export Performance

This article examines why an organization might wish to manage workplace romance, and describes a number of alternative approaches to managing dating. At first sight the ethics of dating bans balances the need to protect female employees from harassment against employee rights to privacy and freedom of association – a rights versus rights issue. However, dating bans seem not to be directed at protecting female employees from harm, but rather protect employers from sexual harassment liability claims – an employer self-interest versus employee rights issue. This article advocates a consequentialist approach to the problem, via the factoring in of other harms caused by prohibiting workplace romance. Given that most workplace romances end up in marriage or long-term partnerships, a ban on workplace romance is argued to be antisocial. The incidence of sexual harassment is very low in comparison to the number of long-term relationships initiated in the workplace. This article concludes by citing examples of firms that encourage romance, showing that is feasible to manage any resulting problems within these firms’ existing conflict of interest and sexual harassment rules.     

R&D activity in Canada: does corporate ownership structure matter?

This study examines the link between ownership structures and R&D activities in Canada. We hypothesize that highly concentrated ownership structures or the presence of controlling minority shareholders negatively affects R&D intensity of Canadian manufacturing firms. Our results show that the concentration of voting rights is negatively related to the level of R&D expenditure and R&D outcomes. Furthermore, we show that the level of separation between the voting and cash flow rights held by dominant shareholders of “Controlling Minority Structure” firms has a positive effect on R&D intensity but a negative effect on R&D outcomes. Copyright © 2010 ASAC. Published by John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Sexual-harassment liability in 1998—goods news or bad news for employers and employees?

In June 1998 the U.S. Supreme Court issued three separate rulings regarding workplace sexual harassment. In an apparent victory for employers, the court ruled in one case that a victim must actually suffer a tangible loss (i.e., a demotion or unwelcome transfer) to establish a case for quid pro quo harassment. The court affirmed, moreover, that employers can absolve themselves of liability in hostile-environment cases by establishing a meaningful and effective policy against sexual harassment. Absent a meaningful policy, however, employers will be liable for a hostile environment created by supervisors. Thus, in another case, the court found an employer liable for workplace harassment because the employer failed to disseminate its existing policy and to follow its terms. Finally, in a same-sex harassment case, the court rejected the notion that egregious sexual harassment is per se unlawful, leaving open the possibility that a harasser who treats men and women equally, no matter how badly, could be found not guilty of unlawful behavior. Still, the court made it clear that an employer's best defense against supervisors' sexual-harassment behavior is an effective prevention policy. Consequently, employers should draft a policy that (1) defines sexual harassment; (2) states the company prohibits such conduct; (3) provides a clear procedure for submitting claims, including the names of individuals involved in the resolution process; (4) states that those who complain or cooperate with an investigation will not be retaliated against; and (5) is disseminated to all new employees when they join the company, reissued to all employees each year, and posted in a conspicuous location in the workplace.     

Street harassment is marketplace discrimination: The impact of street harassment on young female consumers’ marketplace experiences

This study brings street harassment to the retailing and consumer services literature streams. Street harassment describes unwanted interactions in public spaces between strangers or customers and is often motivated by a person’s gender, sexual orientation, or gender expression. To date, marketers have overlooked the occurrence of street harassment in retail establishments and consumer service domains, such as in theaters, public markets, recreational areas, and shopping malls. This work empirically demonstrates the extent to which young women in Nepal experience harassment from men in the marketplace and the various tactics they employ to lessen it. Furthermore, this research exposes the extent to which Nepali men admit to participating in verbal, physical, or visual harassment of women in various retailing and service settings. The article concludes with a discussion of theoretical, managerial, and societal implications and encourages public policy officials to treat street harassment as a criminal offense.     

Ownership concentration,separation of voting rights from cash flow rights,and earnings management: an empirical study in Canada

Drawing from models of Jones (1991) and Kothari, Leone, and Wasley (2005), this study examines the relationship between Canadian corporate ownership structure and earnings management from 1995 to 1999. There is evidence of a nonmonotonic relationship. The concentration of voting and cash flow rights with the ultimate owner first increases earnings management, but as the level of ownership concentration increases, earnings management decreases. There is also a positive correlation between earnings management and voting and cash flow rights divergence. This is particularly evident when the gap between voting and cash flow rights is high. Copyright © 2008 ASAC. Published by John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Investigating Information Systems Research in Canada

This project reports on the state of Information Systems (IS) research in Canada by analyzing research output and impact of Canadian IS scholars appearing in the form of peer‐reviewed journal articles. Specifically, we (a) measured individual productivity and impact, (b) measured institutional productivity and impact, (c) listed journals in which these works have appeared, (d) identified the most influential articles, (e) developed a ranking of IS scholarly journals from a Canadian perspective, and (f) compared the obtained journal ranking with the global IS journal rankings. Based on the findings, it was concluded that the Canadian IS discipline exhibits signs of academic maturity. Copyright © 2011 ASAC. Published by John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Sexual Harassment in Kitchens

ABSTRACT

In summarising the main findings of this study it appears that many hospitality properties in France and Sweden do not have policies regarding sexual harassment nor have the majority of respondents received any information about sexual harassment during their training. Perceptions of what constitutes sexual harassment and the likelihood of reporting possible incidents differ between nationalities and a large percentage of both male and female respondents have experienced serious acts of sexual harassment while at work.     

The era of #MeToo and what managers should do about it

#MeToo has become a global phenomenon since 2017, when many famous women came forward with allegations of sexual harassment (SH) against many famous men. Our purpose here is to help managers of both sexes understand their role in the wake of the #MeToo movement. We reviewed recent research on SH and #MeToo from both academic and practitioner outlets to get a pulse on what is currently being written on these topics. We also studied data we collected on current attitudes and behaviors men and women are experiencing in the wake of #MeToo, as well as examined one of the newer forms of harassment, namely online SH. We use our data and research to explore actions managers can take to prevent SH and respond to it when it occurs. In doing so, we provide new insights for business practice that both managers and scholars need to be aware of, and act upon, in the wake #MeToo.     

Gender differences in perceived workplace harassment and gender egalitarianism: A comparative cross-national analysis

Using 2015 International Social Survey Program (ISSP) data on 38,179 individuals from 36 countries in 9 relatively homogeneous global regions, we analyze the gender differences and the gender gap in perceived workplace harassment (PWH) with particular attention to gender equality's and gender egalitarianism's roles in molding these differences. We find that despite large regional differences, women in most countries are more likely than men to perceive workplace harassment, although this likelihood is higher in countries that score favorably on our gender equality measures. Hence, political empowerment and better economic opportunities alter women's perceptions of workplace harassment, increasing the probability of their experiencing it. Our results also underscore the important roles of values and gender egalitarian practices. Whereas enhanced gender egalitarianism values increase women's perceptions of workplace harassment, concrete practices tend to reduce them. Especially for management, this result highlights the importance of actually implementing gender equality policies at a corporate level, because a discrepancy between corporate values and practices on this issue will only accentuate the perception of harassment.     

On the Persistence of Sexual Harassment in the Workplace

The persistence of sexual harassment in the workplace, despite the general abhorrence for the behavior and programs designed to eradicate it, is puzzling. This paper proposes that gender differences in perceptions of sexual harassment and power differentials in the workplace which permit men to legitimize and institutionalize their perspective are implicated. These two phenomena combine to result in blaming the victim of sexual harassment for her own plight. Shifting attention to the target of sexual harassment facilitates the persistence of sexual harassment because the institutionalized responses to the problem remain unquestioned.     

How does workplace harassment influence the employees’ response in a deluxe hotel?

Recently, workplace harassment in the form of superiors abusing their power over subordinates has emerged as a social problem. In the deluxe hotel work environment, dealing with this issue starts by asking whether harassment by a superior has taken place – and if so, how it has influenced subordinates’ responses. The purpose of this study was to measure the perception of workplace harassment among employees and to explain the relationships between workplace harassment and employee engagement, satisfaction, burnout, and turnover intent in deluxe hotels in South Korea. The results showed that verbal aggression had a significant negative effect on employee engagement, while isolation, disrespectful behavior, and physical aggression exacerbated employee burnout. In addition, employee engagement significantly enhanced job satisfaction, while burnout increased employees’ turnover intent. Limitations and future research directions are also discussed.     

A comparison of the legislated employment equity program,federal contractors program,and financial post 500 firms

We investigated the impact of employment equity legislation, compliance regulations, and the absence of these requirements on the diversity practices of Canadian firms. A field survey involving CEOs and Human Resource Executives of 286 firms covered under the Legislated Employment Equity Program (LEEP), Federal Contractors Program (FCP), and Financial Post 500 (FP 500) companies was conducted. Results indicate that CEOs of LEEP firms reported a greater commitment to managing diversity. LEEP firms, and to some extent FCP firms, also had adopted more practices (e.g., policies, recruiting, training, and accountability) supportive of employment equity than FP 500 firms. It appears that employment equity remains the most effective tool for promoting equity and diversity in Canadian organizations. Copyright © 2010 ASAC. Published by John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Implementing business ethics: Sexual harassment

Sexual harassment is a problem for many organizations. Organizations must understand that sexual harassment lies within the broader context of sex discrimination and inequality of opportunity in the workplace. Sexual harassment is both an illegal and unethical practice. Companies need to implement a policy which respects the rights of individual employees by prohibiting sexual harassment. This policy need to be clearly stated in the company Code of Ethics and enforced rigorously.Karen A. Crain is a Territory Representative for Wyeth-Ayerst Laboratories pharmaceutical company. She has published in a recent Proceeding of the International Conference of theAcademy of Business Administration.Kenneth A. Heischmidt is a Professor of Marketing at Southeast Missouri State University and has published in various professional journals and conferences includingJournal of Advertising, Journal of Professional Services Marketing, Journal of Hospital Marketing, Health Marketing Quarterly andJournal of Education for Business. He has received best paper awards at both the American Marketing Association and the Academy of Business Administration conferences.     

Women Managers in Hong Kong: Personal and Political Agendas

The proportion of women managers in Hong Kong has been steadily increasing in recent years. Hong Kong's ‘can-do’ spirit, education system and laws against sex discrimination probably have contributed to the increase. However, roles in the private (home) and public (work) spheres remain highly gendered. This has led to intense worak–family stress for women managers, some of whom also face sex discrimination at work, such as negative attitudes toward women, the old-boy network and sexual harassment. However, the overall level of awareness of sex roles and sex discrimination among women managers is low. Furthermore, women managers tend not to court open and direct confrontation. Instead, they tend to pursue individualistic personal coping strategies. Women managers rely on support from their extended family and hire domestic help to cope with work–family stress. Women managers also work hard to prepare themselves for a job move when they perceive or encounter sex discrimination. They tend not to make demands of their husbands, the workplace, or the government due to concepts about the private and public divide and about gender roles in these two spheres. We argue that political agendas which push for more flexible gender roles, state childcare and women- and family-friendly organizational policies are needed to bring more women into management at a faster pace.     

Workplace Romance 2.0: Developing a Communication Ethics Model to Address Potential Sexual Harassment from Inappropriate Social Media Contacts Between Coworkers

This article examines ethical implications from workplace romances that may subsequently turn into sexual harassment through the use of social media technologies, such as YouTube, Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter, text messaging, IMing, and other forms of digital communication between office colleagues. We examine common ethical models such as Jones (Acad Manag Rev 16:366–395, 1991) issue-contingent decision-making model, Rest’s (Moral development: Advances in research and theory, 1986) Stages of Ethical Decision-Making model, and Pierce and Aguinis’s (J Org Behav 26(6):727–732,2005) review of workplace romance versus sexual harassment issues. The article makes a contribution by developing a new communication ethics model that includes response positive and response negative contingencies to guide decision-making about inappropriate social media contacts that spillover into the workplace. In addition, we recommend that human resource personnel take a more active role in communicating appropriate ethical rules of conduct concerning the use of social media technologies inside and outside the office.     

Disclosing elements of disclosure: a test of legitimacy theory and company ethics

This paper focuses on some of the ethical issues related to voluntary disclosure of qualitative information by Canadian public companies. Drawing on various organizational theories, we examine some of the ways that companies can symbolically manage legitimacy through disclosure. Press releases of a sample of companies that received cease‐trading orders were analysed for their use of language. We found that high‐risk companies attempted to manage legitimacy by selectively releasing information and by using ambiguous language. Moreover, some companies behaved unethically by using language that suggested a positive future despite the imminent release of a cease‐trading order. These findings have implications for organizational and accounting theorists and stakeholders in the corporate, fiduciary, and investment communities. Copyright © 2008 ASAC. Published by John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

民法法典化视野下的性自主权

理论界与实务界对性自主权问题论及不多,在目前民法法典化的背景下研究性自主权具有其独特的价值。性自主权属于民事权利的范畴,其具体属性应当是具体人格权而非一般人格权。性自主权的基本内容应当包括性保持权与性决定权两个方面。性自主权应当在我国未来的民法典中得到规定。